Tuesday, August 26, 2008

Younis Khan: "[Bob] Woolmer was a great human being and a good coach. I liked working with him. If he had remained coach I would have taken up the captaincy"

Younis Khan has revealed he would have been Pakistan's captain had it not been for the sudden death of Bob Woolmer, the former South Africa and Pakistan coach. Woolmer died during the World Cup in the West Indies last year, and Younis said he would have taken up the captaincy with Woolmer as coach.

Younis had been offered the captaincy following Inzamam-ul-Haq's resignation but turned it down citing the mental strain brought about by Woolmer's death, the subsequent trauma and the failed World Cup campaign. Younis, who had been Inzamam's vice-captain for two years, had been widely tipped as his successor.

"Woolmer was a great human being and a good coach. I liked working with him. If he had remained coach I would have taken up the captaincy when the board made me the offer after Inzamam's resignation," Younis told PTI. "Being captain is a big responsibility and I would have only felt comfortable if a coach like Bob was there."

With Younis not willing, the Pakistan board appointed Shoaib Malik as captain. Malik has been criticised in the past throughout his tenure but Younis felt he should be given time. "Malik is not a bad captain and he needs to be given more exposure and opportunities," he said. "The board must be patient with him."

Younis suggested the new PCB chairman should be appointed after considerable thought. "I believe the chairman should be a professional who knows cricket closely and can communicate with the players," he said. The position was left vacant when Nasim Ashraf stepped down soon after president Pervez Musharraf's resignation.

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Mohammad Yousuf, in successive ODI innings against Zimbabwe in 2002, scored 141*, 76*, 100* and 88, thereby scoring a world-record 405 runs between dismissals. The previous record of 400 belonged to Lance Klusener, who scored 103*, 35*, 13* and 35* against New Zealand, and then 12*, 52*, 48*, 52* and 46* in the World Cup in England, before finally being dismissed for 4.